RECREATION; Finding Funds to Keep the Play in Playland

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG

Published: December 17, 2006

CORRECTION APPENDED

FOR Dominic LaBate, who is retired, Playland Amusement Park is more than roller coasters and cotton candy.

It is the salt water on the edge of the park, it is his daily walk on the boardwalk, and it is something more. ''Everybody loves it,'' said Mr. LaBate, 69, of Port Chester, strolling along the shoreline on a blustery day late last month. ''There is a magic here.''

That magic has turned the 78-year-old Art Deco amusement park into an icon of sorts -- attracting about a million visitors a year and providing the backdrop for a number of Hollywood movies, the most famous of them ''Big,'' starring Tom Hanks.

But magic, alas, does not pay the bills. And Playland, the only government-owned-and-operated amusement park in the country, has been losing $3 million to $5 million a year.

The red ink has become an embarrassment to Westchester County politicians. And until recently, it was an obstacle to improvement. It was difficult enough justifying government spending on roller coasters and Ferris wheels, county legislators said, and even more difficult when those roller coasters and Ferris wheels lose money. But that may be about to change.

A consultant's report, issued in August, outlined a course to solvency, or, at least, smaller deficits. And Andrew J. Spano, the county executive, is embarking on a delicate overhaul of the park, designed to cure Playland's fiscal problems without offending the sensibilities of people like Mr. LaBate, who are, after all, voters.

The changes, thus far, are subtle. Last summer, the county increased the number of cashiers at the ticket windows and at rides to improve the flow of customers. Officials also redesigned the Kiddyland section, built for Playland's youngest visitors, in an attempt to improve circulation and encourage impulse rides.

And more ambitious plans are in the works. Last Monday, the County Legislature approved $5 million to restore two vacant bathhouses, which will probably be converted into a long-planned Westchester Children's Museum.

County officials are also negotiating to buy 17 privately owned rides at the park, including SuperFlight, Playland Plunge and Thunderbolt, that currently operate under leases or revenue-sharing arrangements.

Joseph A. Stout, the county's commissioner of parks, recreation and conservation, said that owning the rides would bring the county about $1.8 million a year in additional revenue, or about half of this year's $3.7 million deficit.

But George Oros, the Republican minority leader in the County Legislature, is skeptical of the administration's projections and questions whether government should even be in the business of operating an amusement park. ''I mean, what's next?'' he asked. ''Are we going to open Kentucky Fried Chickens around the county?''

Mr. Oros said a failed experiment in private management in the early 1980s should not dissuade the county from exploring the idea again. But Mr. Spano has rejected that concept, arguing that a private manager would not respect the character of Playland. And as a Democrat with a Democratic majority in the Legislature, he seems poised to complete his overhaul.

But Mr. Spano, who calls Playland a ''memory maker,'' said he would move cautiously. ''My father took me there, I took my kids there, they take their kids there -- that's what it's all about,'' he said.

''We do tread lightly.''

Photo: FUN -- The 78-year-old amusement park in Rye, N.Y., which is owned and operated by Westchester County, is getting an overhaul. (Photo by Janet Durrans for The New York Times)

Correction: December 24, 2006, Sunday
An article last Sunday incorrectly described Playland Amusement Park in Rye, N.Y. New York State bought Midway State Park in Maple Springs for $4 million in late October; Playland is not the only government-owned and government-operated amusement park in the country.